Upcoming warmth, rain raises flooding concerns across Wisconsin

Slowly melting ice on Tuesday, February 12, 2019, in Kaukauna, Wis. The latest snow storm to move through the state dropped several inches of snow overnight, 6 to 12 inches are expcted by Tuesday evening.
Wm. Glasheen/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin. (Photo: USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)

Your prayers have been answered, Wisconsin. A "heat wave" is on the way.

Well, a 50-degree "heat wave" that is.

According to Keith Cooley, a senior forecaster with the National Weather Service in Ashwaubenon, a warming trend is expected across the state as the week moves along.

Cooley said temperatures throughout northeast and central Wisconsin are expected to hang around in the 30s early on in the week, with a warm-up to the mid 40s by Wednesday. By Thursday, however, temperatures could reach as high as 55 degrees.

With the warm-up will also come rain Cooley said, as Wednesday through Thursday northeast and central Wisconsin could see anywhere from half an inch to an inch of precipitation. This of course could lead to flooding issues.

"There is a little bit of concern of at least some localized flooding," he said. "Most likely in areas where the storm drains are still clogged by snow or any kind of obstruction."

When it comes to local rivers and streams, Cooley said the flooding chance is a little more difficult to determine at this point. He said it all comes down to how the snow melts and how much rain falls.

"The snow pack is about a foot or so above normal in some locations," he said. "So I think a lot of the rivers will be running high this spring — a lot of it just depends on how quickly this snow pack melts."

Cooley said the ideal situation for melting this spring would be warm and sunny for melting during the day with cold nights to give storm drains a break.

But sudden temperatures in the 50s and 60s during the day with temperatures above freezing overnight could cause issues.

"If we get some really really warm temperatures for an extended period of time here, that would melt the snow much quicker, obviously," he said. "That could then quickly begin to cause problems on area streets and local rivers."

Although the immediate reaction for many is to be excited for the warm weather, some are skipping the excitement to get their homes prepared for the flooding.

Larry Willems, of West De Pere, said he is being cautious with the large snow pack and already dug out the snow from around his house.

Much is the same for Kasi Montiesen, who said her husband has already reorganized their basement to prepare for flooding. She said he would also be shoveling out around their Wausau area home before the melting begins.

Chad Doran, city of Appleton communications coordinator, said department of public works crews around the city are aware of the potential for a lot of melting this week, but don't believe it should be a huge issue.

He said crews have been working overnight moving snow around and clearing out storm drains as early as last week in preparation.

"We do have some crews out today clearing storm drains in areas of the city that we can sometimes have water ponding in streets," Doran said. "Wednesday, we will have more crews working on clearing storm drains."